ROMA GANG – Kapamilya

ROMA GANG. Ponte della Musica. 19 September 2021

“Tahjack Tikaz (which means 'strong kick') is a young Filipino rapper. He is 22 years old and was born in Rome, although he lived for many years of his childhood in the Philippines. His lyrics are in Tagalog (his national language) and he is the most famous Filipino rapper in Rome, so much so that he performs almost every year at the great Philippine Independence Day event, and he was also one of the few artists called to perform in front of the world community of Filipinos during the last D2D – the world conference on the Philippine Diaspora held in Rome in 2012. The symbol of Tahjack is a wooden sling engraved with the emblem of the flag of his country, made by his father, who he always carries with him. He is a good guy, with a strong bond with his culture and his lyrics speak of peace. 

'I was born on July 31, 1990, in Rome, of Filipino parents. I attended high school until the second year; I had to drop out of school because my mother got sick, and I had to start working to help my family. I have done many jobs, from the waiter to the newsagent, to the cook. I've never stopped working since I was 17.'”

 

Thus began the interview I did with Tahjack in March 2013.

His mother had died a few days ago and he proudly showed me her face that had just been tattooed over his heart. Tahjack was one of the many encounters and stories I tried to tell at the time to highlight the lives of the migrant communities in Rome. The friendship has remained ever since.

Then, as with all things, time passes and pushes people away to make them meet again like a rubber band.

This is how we met again, once back from Malaysia, in 2020, in a Filipino restaurant. He told me that he had long ago stopped rapping and making music and that he had chosen a more domestic and work-only life.

In the same period, I deepened my friendship with Dabs, old school Filipino rapper and producer and I started following his music.

He told me about the new group called Roma Gang, a collective, or as he calls it a “movement”, founded in Piazza Venezia in 2019 to bring together the forces of several Filipino rappers and crews in Rome.

Started with just a few, and grew to about forty active artists, including video-makers, breakers and tattoo artists.

Just this year Tahjack contacted me again, to tell me that he was back on the pitch with Roma Gang and that they were organizing a great event called “Derby – Roma Gang”, inviting rappers from Milan, just to make it clear that the singles Roma's rappers were coming together to become one force.

“Already we are few, why not support each other?” Dabs explained to me, that’s the sense of “family” of the Roman crew.

 

Tahjack and Crips on stage during the “Derby – Roma Gang”. Rome, 21 August 2021

The two brothers. Ponte della Musica. Rome, 19 September 2021

 

I was happy to see Tahjack behind the microphone again.

Last Sunday, September 19th, I went to the Ponte della Musica to document the new music video they made for the song “Tena”, which is none other than Tahjack's surname.

With the support of the crew, the song is rapped by Tahjack and his brother Cripsztah (Crips) two years younger than Tahjack, born in 1992.

Talking about the meaning of this duo with Tahjack I realized it was nice to tell this story.

Because his brother had also stopped rapping for seven years. So Thajack thought that he had started again he could also be his brother: so he involved him in the crew and they decided to do a song together that bore their surname.

I like this aspect, because behind the artfully assembled appearance for the video with a strong gangsta atmosphere, between grim and tattooed faces, pit bulls, beers, and fake plastic guns, in the end, there is a very strong family bond.

And even if the age difference is minimal, you can touch the feeling of love that binds them.

As a very young Tahjack told me eight years ago, even if he had to work hard the most important thing has always been to help his family, as he is also doing with his brother so that he does not stop believing in his dream.

ROMA GANG. Ponte della Musica. Rome, 19 September 2021

In Tagalog this is called kapamilya, the members of a family. 

This is the meaning of Roma Gang, beyond appearances.

ROMA GANG. Cipro. Rome, 23 July 2021

 

Italian version